Singularity Hypotheses: A Scientific and Philosophical Assessment offers
authoritative, jargon-free essays and critical commentaries on accelerating
technological progress and the notion of technological singularity. It focuses
on conjectures about the intelligence explosion, transhumanism, and whole brain
emulation. Recent years have seen a plethora of forecasts about the profound,
disruptive impact that is likely to result from further progress in these areas.
Many commentators however doubt the scientific rigor of these forecasts,
rejecting them as speculative and unfounded. We therefore invited prominent
computer scientists, physicists, philosophers, biologists, economists and other
thinkers to assess the singularity hypotheses. Their contributions go beyond
speculation, providing deep insights into the main issues and a balanced picture
of the debate.